A Duel for Kurama
by Queen of Spatulas
Summary: rating for mouth at times, but very rare. When Youko reveals a secret and Kurama has to deal with the worst case known to the Spirit Detectives, how will he fair? What's this about a new tournament? (Tenki belongs to my other self)


We don't own YYH or YGO. Sadly. we? Oh you mean. yeah, it's me and my inner spirit! There's some stuff you have yet to learn, people. We do own Tenki, Shinko, both their pendants, the poem, all the cards that will be used in the YYH crew's decks.  
  
"A Duel for Kurama"  
~Prologue: Spirit World's Biggest Case~  
  
The morning had come as soon as he had fallen asleep. Everything about the world was tied into the vines on the side of his small house, just like the new contract that he signed with Koenma. Hiei had not stopped by in so long, not since he and Yusuke had been getting new and smaller assignments for Spirit World.  
  
Kurama looked around, seeing a nearby mirror. His reflection was the same as always- the red hair, green eyes, peach skin. Nothing about his face mattered anymore. He used to take care of his mother, but after the Dark Tournament on Hanging Neck Isle, he decided to get his own small place away from his old home. On his nightstand was a picture of his mother, just a small keepsake for when he was lonely. Lately, Kurama had been more than lonely.  
  
Since Youko, his inner demon, had emerged less than a month ago, Kurama did not sleep well. In fact, in the back of his mind, heard the voice of the fox spirit. The voice kept telling him things that didn't make too much of any sense, but he decided not to listen. When he was sleeping, Kurama didn't have much of a choice.  
  
Youko demanded that a girl be found. A certain one that belonged to him, this girl was supposed to be the only girl that Youko ever found to be interested in. Kurama didn't care much to find her, but he did wonder about her. Who was this girl that Youko used to be in love with that also had to find a human mother to take care of her?  
  
Kurama threw his blanket to the side, looking back at his closet. Nothing was different from yesterday, or even last night when he finally decided to fall into the grasping claws of sleep. Another day had started, so he might as well start too, he decided in the back of his mind, noticing something sitting on his window sill.  
  
"Puu?" Kurama asked himself, the first thing that he said verbally that morning. Right there, in his window, was the little blue creature that happened to be Yusuke's Spirit Beast. "What is wrong, little Puu? Is Yusuke upset?" Kurama asked, rubbing his eyes and approaching the little bird like creature.  
  
Puu waved his wings and made a note appear from under one of his wings. He then made little sounds and nudged it to Kurama, giving it to him. "Puu." he said carefully, pushing the note further.  
  
Kurama picked it up, opened it, and looked at the words written clearly. The note told Kurama of another major case involving the Spirit Detective team. Of course, the red headed young man was obligated to go and face whatever demons had to be defeated. He did sign the contract that Koenma gave to both Hiei and himself.  
  
The little Spirit Beast then opened his wings and started to fly away, chanting his little "Puu" Song as Keiko had called it before.  
  
Keiko? Kurama thought. That's right. I'll finally be able to see how the others are doing. He knew he wouldn't have time to be lonely when he did get on the case with Yusuke, Hiei, Kuwabara, Botan, Shizuru, Keiko, and Yukina. They did make a great team, even Yukina decided to become a part of it. Everyone did have their own jobs, and it was great. Not just four people had the weight of all that work on their shoulders!  
  
Kurama dressed himself and put on his shoes. Then, after about another five minutes of contemplating what else was going on, walked outside to encounter his large garden. Living in the human world was not depressing like Hiei said it would be. In fact, Kurama loved to interact with people and to garden. The librarians knew Kurama by face, name, and exactly what he checked out each time.  
  
Yusuke came running by then in his usual uniform, and Keiko complaining about it being the wrong uniform also as usual. "Hey, it's my favorite fox demon, Kurama-boy." Yusuke said cheerfully, noticing how Kurama was more reflective than happy about how things turned out. "Keiko, you know Kurama."  
  
Keiko nodded, "Yes, Yusuke, I do know Kurama. I am not forgetful enough to forget what uniform I should wear to school!" She was in her school uniform, carrying her bag with notebooks and usual things. Keiko's expression was simply happy. At least Yusuke was not abandoning her like he seemed to do quite often.  
  
Kurama bowed slightly, then came back up to see Hiei. The group would be complete when they reached Spirit World, since somehow Kuwabara, Yukina, and Shizuru always manage to find where they are. They walked together, Kurama was just smiling but silent as he noticed how everyone acted to each other.  
  
In Spirit World, the group managed to make their way around the ogres working, and found the path to Koenma. The little child ruler began his speech as soon as Kurama, who had been trailing the group for quite some time.  
  
"Greetings," Koenma said happily, "I have a new case for the new Spirit Detective Team. It's a search and rescue mission, but luckily for you, we here at Spirit World HQ have already done the searching!" The child pointed to his big blue ogre and the ogre turned on the screen.  
  
Yusuke crossed his arms and asked, "All right, Koenma, who is the little girl we have to save this time?"  
  
Kuwabara's scratchy and ugly voice was heard then, "I hope she's as beautiful as Yukina is!!"  
  
Yukina was holding his hand, strangely, walking with him slowly and being calm about everything. "This team was able to save me, right? I do believe that with Hiei, Yusuke, Kurama and my dear Kazuma here, we will be able to save anyone."  
  
Hiei looked around with disappointment, "The brains of the Kuwabara family isn't with you, oh stupid one." He didn't really notice Yukina hand in hand with Kuwabara until the two stopped and everyone could see them in the light. "I ought to kill you, Kuwabara!"  
  
Yukina stared at Hiei strangely. "Oh, please, I care for Kazuma. I won't tolerate you trying to kill him. Why would it matter to you, anyway, Hiei?" she asked as Hiei just looked up at Kurama.  
  
Kurama then shrugged with a faint smile upon his face. Nothing vocal came from him, but it didn't really matter either. The red headed intellectual just looked at the screen from which Koenma watches everything without running from his little safe-room.  
  
Everyone laughed at what Hiei and Yukina were talking about, except Kuwabara, Hiei, Yukina, and Kurama. Of course, the first three seemed to all have different views on everything anyway.  
  
Koenma interrupted the fighting. "Her name is Tenki." He said simply.  
  
"Tenki?" Hiei asked. "Isn't that the apparition that controls the weather with her emotions? That's not her real name either, Koenma." Hiei seemed to know a lot about this girl that they were going to have to save, but Kurama was in sort of a shock.  
  
Tenki? That's the name of the one I hear in my dreams. Youko mentions her all the time. Kurama thought. Tenki. she isn't really from Japan, but the name is Japanese. She was named for 'weather'. It is quite fitting that a girl named Tenki all along could control the weather.  
  
Koenma's screen showed a dark headed silver eyed girl with fox ears laying in a bed that looked to be warm. Her face showed that she was sleeping, and a nearby window gave the clue that something terrible was being done.  
  
"Damn it," said a twisted male voice. "I've let her sleep and now she refuses to wake up! FIND ANYWAY TO WAKE HER UP!"  
  
Kurama felt his spirit energy all ready burning without him knowing it. Youko could feel what Kurama felt then. He could see through Kurama's eyes, and he did not like what he was able to see.  
  
Koenma then added, "Tenki put a curse upon herself and the place that she was in, which makes this case harder than any one you have ever faced. It's known that through all of this part of the realm all existence is part of that Tenki was a princess of the family of nature, but she fell in love with a thief so she ran off. Both of them were hurt and had to go and recover in human entities. Her human qualities are mostly about her voice, which strikes the wind. She can sing either beautifully or use her voice to terrify. I must warn you all about this: Tenki will only wake up for the voice of the thief. Plus, all the demons that have started to gather there have really managed to adapt to the changing atmosphere of the island."  
  
"So we have to go onto an island?" Keiko asked.  
  
Yukina smiled. "If you can walk on ice, then I will create a bridge."  
  
Kurama then approached Koenma. "Koenma, if you will, let me go and save her myself. I do not need help from anyone else, and I will have her back as soon as I can."  
  
Yusuke looked at Kurama. "Are you saying that Youko is the thief this girl is crying for, Kurama? That YOU have some sort of relationship with her?" he asked with some sort of are-you-crazy tone. "I don't think. you can do it yourself."  
  
Koenma stared at Kurama. "Kurama, is Yusuke right?"  
  
Kurama turned around and started to leave alone. "Don't bother with your attempts. Even if you get to her, the curse will not be lifted. She may be awaiting the voice of Youko, but he is not the one that can break her spell bound heart." He said carefully, leaving behind him a shower of rose petals.  
  
"Kurama!" Kuwabara called, "We need your help."  
  
Kurama looked behind him and calmly stated, "You won't get it. I will work alone on this job. What I can't do for my mother, I will do for her. As part of my past, I must work to correct what I have done." Then, he simply walked on, knowing how Koenma was going to feel about it.  
  
"Damn," Hiei swore. "Without Kurama, I know that we're out of business. We have two rookies and myself for a fighting team now."  
  
"HEY!" Kuwabara and Yusuke shouted. "We're not rookies!" They both then looked at each other and said together, "I know I'M not but he sure is!" The pair of junior high boys looked on Koenma, who's face was very red.  
  
The child's face was about to explode from the pressure that he was putting on the inside of his face. "He thinks he can walk out like that? I can't do anything about it. the contract! He is required to assist in helping us or he will be charged fully for stealing the Forlorn Hope like he did!"  
  
Yusuke shook his head, this time seriously. "It's like when I had to save Keiko. Let Kurama go, and we'll follow behind him to make sure that he's all right."  
  
Koenma's face brightened up, seeing the bright side to the situation. "Yes, yes, I think that it's a grand idea, if I do say so myself." He laughed and his blue ogre then spoke.  
  
"But, Koenma-sama, that was Yusuke's idea!"  
  
"Shut up, Ogre!"  
  
Soon enough, matters were settled, and Kuwabara, Yusuke, and Hiei went to follow Kurama. Yukina went with them to make the bridge to the island while Keiko stayed in Spirit World to help Koenma with small things. Not even Kuwabara knew where Shizuru was, but it didn't stop the search. For Tenki and Kurama.  
  
Chapter One  
"Weather Report"  
  
Kurama ran quickly back to his home, remembering something that Youko had told him in a dream recently about a pendant that belonged to Tenki.  
  
"This silver pendant was the one that she gave me when we first met. In it is a poem that will tell her. you mean no harm... other than that, Tenki will kill you if you get too close. She's afraid of most all people and what they'll do to her. It also contains a secret power that no other object can contain." Youko told Kurama one night. Having another voice in his head, Kurama had to deal with it. The real part of him would never go back to where ever he stayed for so many years, as if Youko was ready to finally come out and live again as himself.  
  
Hiei was shocked by Kurama's decisions, never have seeing him run off to do an assignment alone. Ever since he and the fox demon had worked together to steal the three items that day over a year ago, they always worked together as a team. Yusuke knew that they were following Kurama because he was, too, part of the Spirit Detective team, but he didn't want to interfere. How would he have felt if someone would have gotten in the way when trying to save Keiko from Hiei or the Saint Beast Suzaku. Either way, Kuwabara was trying to figure out why exactly Hiei was mad at him before. It didn't make any sense to him, really.  
  
At Kurama's house, the red head went through his wardrobe, looking underneath the boards to finally find the beautiful silver pendant that he dreamt about before. "I don't think that I have much of a choice," Kurama said to himself, staring deeply into his reflection from the shinny silver. "I don't understand," he said again, "Tenki. why do you cause such a stir in my heart?"  
  
Somewhere, far off.  
  
"Do you know what you're doing?" asked a silver headed man with a golden eye. "I don't know what exactly to tell you other than it isn't working!" He looked outside to see that nothing was happening but horrible storms, almost as if they were a warning to the rest of the world.  
  
A tall and hunky man stood over the girl they were trying to wake up from a coma like state. "All I can tell you is that she sealed herself inside. Even if I was to beat her until her heart was about to stop, she would not wake out of that state." He informed him. "Master Pegasus, I'm sure that only one person in the outside world could wake her up."  
  
Pegasus nodded and agreed. "I can't even see into her dreams, it's so horribly dark in there. All I see are bright green eyes that flash back at me like they want to warn me. I know that if I could prove that this girl has powers to control the weather and sell her off, I'll have enough money to just buy Kaiba corp.!" He laughed harshly and sat down on the bed after dismissing the tall one. "Tenki, I know you await him. The only one you loved, but he's dead! He can't save you! I know that if anyone wanted your powers, they would take care of you anyway."  
  
Tenki's eyes watered, and her body started to shiver. The girl's face clenched and her mouth opened to scream the word, "KURAMA!" with heart- shattering power.  
  
Soon enough, Pegasus knew exactly what it meant. "That's his name? Ah, I see? Calling out with spirit energy like that won't do you any good. FLUFFY!"  
  
Fluffy, the sinister man from before, entered then immediately. "Yes, Master?"  
  
Pegasus laughed harshly once again, "His name is Kurama. The one that she requires to lift her curse. Let it be known! Every man with the name Kurama shall be gathered here!"  
  
At Kurama's house.  
  
"Suiichi!" a voice called from the door, banging on it. "Suiichi! You must come! Your mother needs you right now!"  
  
Instantly, Kurama shoved the pendant in his pocket and ran to the door where a middle aged lady stood. "Where is she? You must tell me, Lydia." He almost demanded, but Lydia just pointed over to her right.  
  
".Shori. is. over." Suddenly, Lydia fell and landed in Kurama's arms, but the red head didn't know what she meant. He noticed that the weather was over bearingly hot, causing many people to fall over in the streets.  
  
Kurama took Lydia into his house and ran down the street, finding his mother on the ground. "Oh! Mother!"  
  
"Suiichi." His mother tried to pick herself off the ground, but it didn't work until her son decided to help her. Kurama carried his mother down to his house, where he took care of her and Lydia.  
  
"Forgive me," Shori whispered as Kurama lay her in his own bed. "I know that you must have things to do, son."  
  
"Not at all," Kurama replied. "I was wondering about this weather. Did you manage to watch anything on it?"  
  
Shori shook her head. "Oh no, not at all. Can you?"  
  
Kurama understood exactly and turned on his small television that he never really used except to record episodes of Rurouni Kenshin while he was out. There was weather man on screen, telling what he thought of what was going on.  
  
"And," the weather man said sternly, "Tokyo has been hit with a severe heat wave, as if someone is controlling it. It's been said that the millionaire Pegasus J. Crawford, the creator of the popular "Magic and Wizards" card game knows why it has been happening. Let's go live to his island."  
  
The screen showed Pegasus smiling. "I know that you in Tokyo must be suffering in this heat wave, and I know how to make it die out. I can only tell you that the person capable of this is running loose in your city. His name by a close friend of his is 'Kurama.' When you find him, this heat wave will die." The screen then went back to the weather man.  
  
"Etch, now that was a threat, but he's giving money for those of you who give him this Kurama guy. Anyone with that name will be found, so you might as well give yourself up, whoever you are." The weather man decided to fill in.  
  
Kurama felt his energy grow without even controlling it. "I have to go, Mother."  
  
"Suiichi, do you know this Kurama?" Shori asked. "If he's a friend of yours, you shouldn't even bother turning him in. That's not right."  
  
"My friend needs my protection." Kurama said, "I wouldn't turn anyone that I value like this person in for the world, Mother." He took care of a couple small things, flipped a few switches here and there, then he left with a simple goodbye. Lydia was able to get up and tend to things, so she did.  
  
With Yusuke and the others.  
  
"Damn," Kuwabara said. "It's really cold."  
  
"Don't you mean it's really hot, Kuwabara?" Yusuke asked.  
  
"Ohh, yeah." Kuwabara responded, "Hey! Is that Kurama?"  
  
"It sure is," Yukina responded.  
  
Hiei rose his head from the nap like state that he was in. "Then he must have received the message via the picture box."  
  
"Yeah," Kuwabara agreed. "Let's go then."  
  
"Finally you said something decent." Yusuke laughed as the three made their way after Kurama with Yukina in their company.  
  
Kurama made his way somehow to the island alone.  
  
The island was covered in many different landscapes, but there was a huge storm, centered over the middle of a castle on the island. Nothing was all that extraordinary, either. Kurama knew he heard Koenma say that this was supposed to be the hardest case for their team, but it wasn't that way.  
  
Kurama walked up the island's huge stairs that went through and through the hills of forests, sand lands, ponds, and grasslands, up to the castle door where Fluffy stood before him.  
  
"How did a stranger like you make it on this island? I don't see any boat!" Fluffy said angrily. He was taller than Kurama, but Kurama did not fear him.  
  
Kurama reached into his hair and pulled out his signature red rose. "Must you know?" he asked, using his spirit energy to turn it into the rose whip. "All right then! It's called. THE POWER OF THE ROSE!"  
  
Fluffy instantly fell, fainted.  
  
"Hmmm," Kurama thought out loud, entering the castle.  
  
Yukina was making a bridge of ice for the people to cross.  
  
"How boring," Yusuke said, thinking about being the spirit detective. "This job doesn't have anyone I can trash! What about this being the hardest job we ever had?"  
  
Yukina then said, "It's hard for me to freeze this water, Yusuke, but it's harder on Kurama."  
  
"I still can't believe he's at the island all ready." Kuwabara said.  
  
"Well, what do you expect?" Hiei spat quietly. "He's gone crazy and Kurama's worse than I am when it comes to letting loose on his enemies. That stupid Crawford guy is going to get it when Kurama reaches him."  
  
Kurama was then making his way into the Inner Sanctum of the castle.  
  
Kurama walked slowly, noticing everything around him carefully. "I don't see any more opposition from anyone."  
  
The silver headed Pegasus Crawford opened a large door down the hall that Kurama was standing beside. "Ah, you must be. Suiichi Minamino, the son of a woman who is very beautiful!! Yes! It's a pleasure to meet you."  
  
"You have no idea what you have done," Kurama said slowly. "Taking the girl, Tenki, from her rightful place in this world."  
  
"Suiichi, I don't know who you're talking about." Pegasus stated.  
  
Suddenly the door opened again and there stood Tenki wearing a black and silver kimono. "I heard the voice of the theif. Pegasus, YOU'VE TAKEN HIM!!" Tenki's eyes started to turn gold then red while she was charging all sorts of energy on the inside of the castle. "What is it that you demand from me?"  
  
Pegasus was delighted at the sight of Tenki awake and he glanced over at Kurama. "No, he's the one who took your theif away, Miss Tenki. I wouldn't dare hurt you in such a way." he said, walking behind Tenki and pointing at the red headed young man. "Kill him to enact revenge!"  
  
"Ah dammit!" came Yusuke's voice as he broke a window getting in the castle. "Why is it that we have to fight her? That's."  
  
".exactly why it was going to be the hardest case that we've ever seen." Hiei explained. "Kurama's the only one who can do anything." He climbed over Kuwabara's back, who was trying to be a stepping stone for Yukina.  
  
Kurama once again pulled out his rose and used his energy to transform it into the rose whip. "All right, Tenki. I don't want to fight you." he said, seeing Tenki's eyes go back from red to gold. "Tenki?"  
  
".the fox spirit Youko Kurama." she said, pulling out a sword from behind her. ".tell me that he lives." Tenki cried as she summoned the wind powers to her sword. "Please, you know that Youko is alive, right?!"  
  
"Why is she going to try and attack?" Yukina asked, "if he is the one who saved her from the curse."  
  
Kurama suddenly remembered. 'The poem,' he thought, pulling out the silver necklace. "Tenki, listen. Youko Kurama is here. He is with you right now. Listen to him tell you this.  
Far from where you can see me,  
I dwell along side you forever.  
Through the space of eternity  
I will forsake your love never.  
Even though I cannot stand beside you  
I shall hold you in your dreams  
Anything you ask, I can do  
Besides become more real that it seems."  
  
As suddenly as Tenki was going to attack, her guard lowered. Her eyes turned from gold to silver again, and her tail appeared. "I know. I understand. I can't either." She reached into her pocket and out came a golden pendant. "Youko Kurama did the same thing, Suiichi, that Princess Tenki did to me. My name is not Tenki, however, like you I have a human name. My name is Shinko, but I like Tenki better."  
  
"You're really Shinko?" Yukina asked. "I hear so much about the spirit of Shinko, the swordswoman in this day and age. She had ambitions just like Tenki of the legends. They called her 'Shinko: the modern samurai'."  
  
Tenki waved her sword around and turned to Pegasus. "I know what you did to me, Pegasus. what Fluffy tried to do to wake me up. You shall pay for what you have done. Suiichi, please, take the others far from here. I'm going to make them PAY!"  
  
Kurama touched her shoulder slightly. "Hold on, you don't need to take such a violent action to make him suffer. Let me do it for you."  
  
"All right." Tenki nodded, putting her sword away. ".Yusuke." She said, turning to the others. "I know of you from my dreams. all of you. Yusuke, Kuwabara Kazuma, Hiei, and Yukina. then the one that you call." When she turned to see Kurama, she realized why it was he who came to her. "Kurama."  
  
Pegasus rose his hand and smiled horribly. "What? You don't want to deal with me, do you? All right!!! SOUL EXTRACTION!!"  
  
Tenki's body fell to the ground right beside Kurama. When Kurama turned to find that she was laying there lifeless, his face clenched in anger. "What. did you do?" he demanded harshly. "Tell me!"  
  
Pegasus crossed his arms. "Let me show you." He held up a card with Tenki's face on it, lightly pleased and smiling. "This is Tenki, the card!! Her soul is within the deepest realm of shadows. You want to save her, Kurama? Win my TOURNEMENT!"  
  
Yukina walked to Tenki's body and tried to use her healing powers on it. "Ah. Kurama. she's."  
  
"No, I don't think so, little girl! SOUL EXTRACTION!!"  
  
Yukina fell beside Tenki, making both Hiei and Kuwabara mad at Pegasus.  
  
"EXCUSE ME!!" Kuwabara screamed loudly. "How in the hell did you do that? GIVE HER BACK!!"  
  
Pegasus felt his body shake from the energy emitted by the three men he had angered deeply. "You have to construct a deck to play in my tournament. If you win, you will get one wish that you want. So what do you say?"  
  
"I say we kill him now." Hiei sneered, unsheathing his sword. "All right?"  
  
"No!" Kurama said, "We'll do it his way and beat him at his own game. What are the requirements to join your tournament, Pegasus?"  
  
"I'm glad you asked. You must learn to play a game called 'Magic and Wizards.' It's quite simple, actually. Go to this town in Japan, and you should find a store where they teach you how to play. I'm sure that the young man there needs a reason to go, right? Well." Pegasus laughed and pointed at the window, where stood Shizuru and Keiko. "My favorite guards found them. SOUL EXTRACTION!!"  
  
Shizuru and Keiko instantly fell like the other girls.  
  
"Now everyone else has a reason to join the Duelist Kingdom's Magic and Wizards Tournament!! MUAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!"  
  
**What will become of the heroes of Yu Yu Hakusho now when confronted with a type of tournament never faced before? A card game? (In America it's called Duel Monsters, and Pegasus is Maximillion Pegasus. Who named him that?) 


End file.
